Coaches

Velvet Minnick

CrossFit Level 2 Trainer

CrossFit Weightlifting

CrossFit Movement and Mobility

CrossFit Gymnastics

USAW Level 1 Sports Performance

Owner

I have been pretty athletic most of my life, from soccer as a teenager to track/cross country runner and volleyball player in high school. During and after college most of my time was spent running long distances and experimenting with triathlons. After having my second child, I wanted to get back into shape and my best friend convinced me to run a half-marathon. I did, and was excited that I could put my body through it and be pretty good at it. Over time I felt like my body was missing something, not growing completely. Sure I could run 13.1 miles, but I didn’t feel like I was “in shape”. The same best friend then introduced me to this thing called CrossFit. I brushed it aside at first, thinking there’s no way this type of exercising could possibly help my overall fitness. How could a workout that only lasted 7 to 20 mins make me a better runner, or simply improve my fitness? After lots of consideration, I made the move to try it out. In Aug 2011, I completed my first Elements class. Not only was my body in shock from the various movements, but I also got my first taste of the CrossFit community.

In December of 2012, I was given the opportunity to take the Level 1 Trainer Certificate course and become a coach at Mission CrossFit SA, in San Antonio TX. It was during this time that my passion for coaching grew. I was surrounded by a team of coaches that genuinely cared about their athletes, both in and out of the box. As a coach, I truly felt the meaning of the CrossFit community and how much of a positive impact the “constantly varied, functional movements performed at high intensity” type of fitness could have on athletes. Helping people make positive changes in their lives is what drives my passion for CrossFit.

I am extremely excited to have the opportunity to share my passion for the sport of CrossFit with my hometown community of Blacksburg. I have lived in the New River Valley most of my life (except for the 3 years I spent in Texas!) from my days at Giles High School with my future husband Kevin, to being an Alumna of Virginia Tech.

Vaughn Franklin

CrossFit Level 1 Trainer

CrossFit Movement and Mobility

CrossFit Kids Trainer

Growing up as a the second youngest of 8 children in Washington State I always had the need to prove that I was as fast and fit as my older brothers. When I was 11 my family moved to D.C. and I started public school. From there I ran track and swam from 7th grade till 12th, dedicating my time and energy to becoming the best runner possible. Then, in 2008 I came down with Celiac/IBS/intolerance to everything. This is when I developed my passion for nutrition. Over the course of a year I healed my gut so it is now “almost” normal. My first job as a swim coach proved to be one of the most rewarding and fun “jobs” I believe exists, and plus, working with fun and blissfully innocent children is a blast!

In 2010 I was accepted to Virginia Tech and joined the Corps of Cadets and Air Force ROTC with an obligation to serve our country. During my freshman year I was introduced to CrossFit through the PRE program… I was hooked immediately. In 2012 I ran the Brush Mountain Breakdown and then ran the Richmond Marathon two weeks later. There, I qualified for the 2013 Boston Marathon which I ran in a time of 2:56. I did so training CrossFit with very low mileage on the side. Spring 2013 is also when I met my gorgeous and stunning girlfriend Jessica May who has been there for me every single day since we met.

In May of 2014 I graduated from Virginia Tech with a Bachelor in History but did not commission into the Air Force as a Combat Rescue Officer select as expected. This turned my career path 180 degrees. I decided that I am going to make my living through the things I am most passionate about: physical fitness, nutrition, living a happy life and helping others achieve the same. Currently, I am an intern with Virginia Tech’s Strength & Conditioning for the Olympic athletes. I have the CrossFit Level 1 Trainer certificate as well as CrossFit Movement and Mobility. Outside of CrossFit 460 I own a professional window cleaning business and hang out with Jessica as much as possible. CrossFit is my passion, I’m honored to be a part of this family and improve lives together!

Ashley Neelis

CrossFit Level 1 Trainer

I wasn’t involved in a lot of organized sports growing up; I played volleyball every year since I was in grade school and still occasionally play on competitive leagues. But I got my introduction into fitness growing up on a horse farm in Michigan. I had to do a lot of “barn chores” which included hauling hay bales, carrying heavy water buckets or grain bags, etc. This was hard work but I loved it.

In 2011, I moved to Virginia with my sister as I was ready for a big change in my life. I didn’t have much time to myself or for a social life as I worked full time while attending classes at Radford University. In 2013, I hit a wall and was exhausted from all of the stress of my busy lifestyle, so I decided I really wanted to focus on my overall health and well-being. That’s when my sister and I had heard about this crazy thing called CrossFit and we decided to give it a try together. After the first class, I was exhausted, but it was a different kind of exhaustion that I had been feeling, I felt like I had already bettered myself and was ready to come back for more. I have been doing CrossFit ever since!

I love the community, coaches, and variety the sport brings to benefit my overall well-being. I have competed in Superfit competitions, local fundraiser competitions, and in August 2016 I competed in my first Strongman competition. I recently got my L1 to further my knowledge of the sport and I want to be able to help athletes reach their goals and better themselves the way all of my coaches have helped me. On top of coaching, I work full time as a Product Manager at a robotics company and do pet sitting/walking on the side, as I am a huge animal lover. I am super excited to be a part of this community and can’t wait to help make positive changes in people’s lives.

Tanner Wine

CrossFit Level 1 Trainer

I grew up in Plano, Texas, primarily playing football and baseball until the start of high school. Once in high school, I switched to playing lacrosse until my senior year after I moved to Richmond, VA. After being accepted by Virginia Tech to study Biochemistry, I started getting more into powerlifting and trying to build strength. I started to hear more about CrossFit and was intrigued, so from time to time I would implement a WOD from the main site into my routine at my garage gym.

After not really seeing the success I had wanted from traditional powerlifting, I decided to try CrossFit full time. In October of 2015, I joined CrossFit 460 and was hooked. Not only were the workouts mentally and physically challenging, but the community also gave it a different environment than a traditional gym that kept me coming back. In the summer of 2016, I decided I wanted to become a coach at CrossFit 460, and received my L1 in September.

I am very excited to be a part of this team at CrossFit 460, and I hope I can help each athlete achieve the goals they have set!

Kevin Pei

CrossFit Level 1 Trainer

I’m originally from Manhattan, Kansas, and I lived there until my family moved to the D.C. area in 2013. After doing Taekwondo in Kansas for a few years, I wanted to try something different and unique when I moved, which is how I found CrossFit. After doing my first free class at Ballston CrossFit with wall balls, burpees, and box jumps, I questioned the existence of my legs and my overall fitness level. Laid out on the gym floor, gasping for air, I was immediately hooked. I was amazed at what the athletes at my gym could do. I saw men and women of all ages crushing weights and doing gymnastics movements that I never could have imagined myself doing. I absolutely love CrossFit’s chase for the feeling of improving WOD times, lifting heavier weights, learning how to do new movements, and RXing your first workout.

I fell in love with Olympic weightlifting when one of the CrossFit coaches at Ballston CrossFit encouraged me to come to weekend Barbell Club. In 2014, I competed in my first local competition before injuring my rotator cuff shortly afterwards. A few years later, I decided to divert my focus from CrossFit and return to Olympic weightlifting, where I qualified for the American Open Series and Junior Nationals in 2017.

I received my CrossFit L1 in May 2016 and began coaching XFit for Virginia Tech Rec Sports with my acceptance to Virginia Tech’s Industrial and Systems Engineering program that fall. It was a great starting experience, but it was difficult to coach CrossFit-esque workouts with the limited space and equipment. After a year of coaching XFit, I decided that I wanted to get back into a real CrossFit gym and further my coaching education and experience here at CrossFit 460. I’m absolutely pumped to coach here, and to meet and help everyone smash fitness and health goals!

Will Borin

CrossFit Level 1 Trainer

I grew up in Charlotte North Carolina and as a kid I was constantly running around and playing outside. With two older brothers I had to learn how to fend for myself and outcompeting them physically was always the goal. As a result, I was always searching for new challenges from outdoor activities to organized sports. Growing up I tried to play every sport available but focused on swimming, football, wrestling, lacrosse, and CrossFit in high school being apart of 7 state championship teams. I worked as a swim coach and instructor my entire high school career and I was always the coach to physically condition our athletes on dry land. I also had an internship for the second semester of my senior year in high school where I taught 3rd grade and on the playground I would run a impromptu fitness camp.

I believe CrossFit is a lifestyle and my reasons for doing it have always remained the same: I never want my physical fitness to be the limiting factor in my life. My life philosophy however is to constantly search for things I can’t do so I can overcome that. Oh the struggle!

Coming to Virginia Tech in 2016 to study Sustainable Biomaterials I immediately started caving with the VPI Cave Club and started backpacking the Appalachian Trail on the weekends. I then joined the Blacksburg Rescue Squad to get more involved and educated in technical rescue operations. I joined the club swim team to feed my competitive addiction, but feeling incomplete I joined CrossFit 460 that fall and immediately felt like part of the family. The community is truly second to none. Being a coach is a dream job of mine and I’m honored to serve in any capacity possible.

About

CrossFit 460

CrossFit 460 is a strength and conditioning facility with fitness programs designed for first time CrossFitters to competitive athletes and everyone in between. We focus on correct functional movement mechanics that can be applied in our everyday lives.